Egypt-Italy business council prepares study on new canal

The Egyptian-Italian Business Council compiled a study on the economic impact of the new Suez Canal on international trade and navigation movement, Egypt’s Ambassador here Amr Helmy said.

The new Egyptian project will boost the Suez Canal’s competitiveness and make it take up 25% of the commercial navigation movement that passes through Panama Canal, an Italian economic expert said.

The new canal will allow the passage of all kinds of cargo ships, including giant oil tankers, encouraging international freight companies to prefer the canal during navigation between Asia and Europe, the expert said.

The study showed that the new canal will increase commercial navigation rates in the Mediterranean Sea, positively reflecting on seaports in Europe, he added.

On 5 August 2014, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi launched the new waterway project, which is being dug alongside the Suez Canal. It is meant to add an extra lane to the Suez Canal, one of the world's most important thoroughfares for trade, in an attempt to increase the number of ships using it each day.

The Suez Canal, which allows ships to travel from Europe to Asia without navigating around Africa, only provides for one-way traffic, with occasional room for ships to pass each other. The new lane will allow ships to travel in both directions.

The new canal will be opened on August 6.